oddling thoughts

Random Tékumel related thoughts that have crossed my mind in the past 36 hours

some how the first half of this post was cut..

here is is, restored

I am still working on the campaign updates, between INTERNET distractions. Writing them offline helps get a draft out, but, I need this puter to get Tsolyáni spell checkers. There is, for those who are unaware, a Tsolyáni dictionary for word processors available on in the Yahoo group files. Unfortunately, it was created for MS word in or before 2005 and won't import easily into the current Open Office. I have been manually adding words as I have needed them, and occasionally go off on the net to research an easier way.. without success. Which, by the magic of the Internet, often leads me to waste several hours on Ebay or FB, or reading blogs. Amazing time machine the Internet. All that led me to an blog post on Hill Cantons about RPG narratives and what makes em good, bad, indifferent, justifiable, or offenses against nature. Hold that thought..

There is a new Blog devoted to Tékumel news on the web, called the Skein of Destiny.

It is a group blog, and it was the spawn of a yahoo group discussion that began when the admin of Skein offered to run a newsletter. I countered that a group blog could reduce the individual work load, and he and I, without consultation, both created a blog for that purpose. Only he actually put some articles up.. which makes his much more interesting to read. No reason to compete, but now I have the makings of a Tékumel blog, and no real mission. These two paragraphs are related..

I had been considering making my Tékumel blog a group blog, for the purpose of game session reports. Anyone running or playing in a campaign could, if they desired, become a contrib, and log their campaign sessions as they saw them. I just thought perhaps an additional feature might be to link it to a drop-box for the posters to put Maps, or pics or such.. though drop box may not be a good choice.. .. probably shouldn't brainstorm and blog at the same time..

At any rate, what are your opinions? I am especially interested in the views of potential contributers.. as they would be crucial. Readers, as with all things blog, are optional.

I will probably cross post this question in a few places..

The Dictionary, mentioned above, and the blue room archives, and a few other bits of readily available data on the net, might make good fodder for a collective effort to begin to build a Tékumel Wiki. I am trying to go through proper channels to achieve a Tékumel Wiki, and I understand that such a beast is a frightening prospect for those who wish to control the IP rights.. so this is tricky ground to negotiate. This is not a new thought, it has crossed my mind before, and is beginning to wear a path..

My plan/pipe dream to make a Penóm Gazateer got a minor boost in that I have invented a new beasty that I think will fit well into the Swamps and the Underworlds. Have to try it on my players sometime soon..

“The unsecured path”.. I won't provide stats, as I believe strongly that the path forward is a system-less Tékumel .. But the creature is an intelligent plant/fungus that grows floats in the swamps. Each individual pod is about 5-8 inches in diameter, though not specifically round. They cluster in dense communities making a firm floating surface that can cover miles of open, stagnant water.

But saying too much now might spoil the fun.. I will tell more about this in a future post.

I am toying with trying to create a set of rules for Den Den. The paucity of information on the game is daunting. The only thing I am sure of is that the players can sometimes change one piece for another, and the game is supposedly an abstraction of the complex political world of Tékumel. I am thinking, currently, that, unlike most games known to our readers, players tokens won't be designated by color. And players provide their own tokens for a game, rather than both or all tokens coming from one source. The tokens are standardized in some manner, but customizable. Much as we see lots of different renditions of the common chess set. Pieces are defined by some simple attributes (several sizes, perhaps, and several colors for each set) but they are also customized, possibly with clan markings, or temple markings.. that have no impact on the game except to identify the piece as belonging to one player.

All the above was actually just a distraction from my original reason for creating this post..

Got together with some old friends the other night and played a few classic board games..

First up was Raj, a card/tile bidding game I had never played before. Picked up a copy at a thrift store, and it looked like something I could import to Tékumel .. (hence all the digression above..). It was compelling, and played quickly, but was really just a way to kill time until all the players arrived.

Next a game of Circus Maximus. A departure from our traditional fair, actually. We usually play Dune..I have bling.. We were doing a quick race, 1.5 Laps. The pic is from just before the first corner. In the next turn I entered the corner a bit hot, and rolled badly, flipping my chariot. I spent the rest of my career and life as a charioteer being dragged around the course. Geo flipped one turn later, but cut himself free. Then Jerry ran him over. Mark won, but Jerry was the crowd favorite.. 

 Then we played Dune, but, Chip had to leave – some lame gotta work tomorrow excuse – and the FLGS was closing.. so it was going to be abbreviated. Jerry outsmarted all of us and time itself by pulling a win on turn three while we all tried to figure out if we could get one more turn in before our deadline. Since we still had time, we played out one more turn, and, at the designated hour of 1045, low and behold Jerry still had control of the most cities.. Cudos to Emperor Jerry for pulling off two wins in four turns.. He shall not be invited back..(I kid.. I kid..)

wow.. mustn't post free hand after midnight.. This think is littered with typos and edit errors..  ed.